IVF success rates decrease with age

Couples who leave conception until later in life are risking "more trouble" with fertility, according to one expert.

Clare Lewis-Jones MBE, chief executive of Infertility Network UK, has said that couples who wait to have children are running the risk of decreased chances of conception.

Ms Lewis-Jones MBE commented: "We are aware that many couples are leaving it till later in life before trying to conceive and with the possibility that lifestyle factors may be affecting our fertility, more couples will find they have trouble conceiving."

She also said that couples who may be relying on IVF treatment to conceive later in life should be aware that the chances of becoming pregnant reduce dramatically over the age of 30.

Ms Lewis-Jones MBE added that NHS treatment was largely unavailable to older couples as they would not meet the criteria of many Primary Care Trusts.

Recent research from the Universities of St Andrews and Edinburgh found that women have lost 90 per cent of their eggs by the age of 30.